“Dream big! You can achieve your wildest dreams as long as you work hard and get yourself in school.”
Nicknamed ‘the Beast’, Tendai Mtawarira is the most-capped prop to have played for the Springboks.
Born in Zimbabwe, his talent at rugby was quickly spotted and he was offered a bursary as a teenager to train with the Sharks in South Africa. In 2008 he was called up to play for the national squad as he’d lived in the country for enough time.
But in 2010 he was barred from playing because of a controversy over his nationality. It took the intervention of Archbishop Desmond Tutu before he was able to play for the team again.
He also struggled sometimes as a big, aggressive child. And so - now he’s retired from rugby - his new passion is helping children and young adults reach their potential, through his ‘Beast Academy’ and also as an Unicef ambassador.
Alan Kasujja speaks to the Beast – just back from a trip with Unicef to South Sudan – but also with a young South Sudanese woman whose journey has taken her from cattle camp, to street child, to finally becoming an ‘inspirator’ who helps other young people to realise their goals.
NOTE: Correction made at 0645 GMT changing UNHCR to Unicef.
